20 TV shows everyone will be talking about in 2023, from The Idol to Kaleidoscope

There’ll be plenty to feast your eyes on in the next 12 months, writes Ellie Harrison, from a new Stephen Graham drama and Ncuti Gatwa’s debut as the Doctor, to the return of ‘Big Brother’

Clockwise from top left: ‘The Idol’, ‘Kaleidoscope’, ‘Doctor Who’ and ‘Shrinking’ (Sky/Netflix/BBC/Apple)

Whether you’re looking for celebrity deep-dives, debauched dramas, cosy book adaptations or the return of old favourites, there is plenty of television to feast your eyes on in 2023.

Stephen Graham is starring in a new Netflix crime drama, Bodies, while Lily Rose-Depp and The Weeknd can be seen in the new show from Euphoria writer Sam Levinson, The Idol.

David Nicholls’s bestselling novel One Day is being adapted for TV, and shows from Big Brother to Succession are returning to telly.

There are also comedies starring familiar faces such as Simon Bird and Lily Allen, and tell-all documentaries from Robbie Williams and Pamela Anderson.

Here’s what we’re most looking forward to over the next 12 months…

Pamela: A Love Story

Netflix, 31 January

Pamela Anderson was conspicuously quiet when the show based on her life, Pam & Tommy, came out in February 2022. Now, we know why: she’s been making a tell-all documentary with Netflix, which will feature personal video and diaries, and chart her rise to fame and that infamous sex tape scandal.

Heartstopper season two

Netflix, 2023

On the cosier end of the spectrum, Heartstopper is coming back after its universally adored first season. Kit Connor, Joe Locke, and Yasmin Finney will all be returning for this drama about teenage romance and self-discovery.

Doctor Who

BBC One, November

Ncuti Gatwa as The Doctor (BBC)

At the end of the year, three special episodes to mark the show’s 60th anniversary will feature familiar faces from David Tennant to Catherine Tate, while newcomer (and Sex Education favourite) Ncuti Gatwa will also be making his debut as the 15th Time Lord.

Daisy Jones and The Six

Amazon Prime Video, 3 March

The screen adaptation of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s hit book is almost upon us. Like the novel, the miniseries will be set in the LA music scene of the Seventies, and stars Riley Keough and Sam Claflin as musical rivals-turned-bandmates Daisy and Billy.

Nolly

ITVX, February

Anything with Russell T Davies’s name on the credits is worth checking out, and his newest show is this three-part drama centred on actor Noele Gordon, who was cut from her beloved ITV daytime show Crossroads in 1981. We’ve had a peek at it and can confirm that Helena Bonham-Carter has a lot of fun in the role.

Sex Education season four

Netflix, 2023

Although he’s going to be pretty busy in the Tardis over on BBC One, Ncuti Gatwa is returning as the irrepressible Eric in Sex Education season four. Asa Butterfield, who plays Otis Milburn, has teased a new school, new locations, and said there would be “some new characters”.

The Idol

Sky Atlantic, 2023

Lily Rose-Depp in ‘The Idol’ (Sky)

Taking things up a notch, Lily Rose-Depp will be starring in The Idol, created by Abel Tesfaye (The Weeknd), Reza Fahim, and Sam Levinson. The latter made Euphoria, and by the looks of things, this new show about a popstar and a cult leader looks set to be just as debauched.

Happy Valley season three

BBC One, New Year’s Day

The New Year is kicking off with Sarah Lancashire’s no-nonsense copper Catherine Cawood returning in Happy Valley. The show is back after a seven-year hiatus, but it’s as gripping and original as ever. James Norton is also reprising his role as the monstrous Tommy Lee Royce.

You season four

Netflix, Part 1: 9 February, Part 2: 9 March

Penn Badgley is back as creepy old Joe for the fourth season of You. The series will be dropping in two parts, and the action is moving to a new city: London. Ghosts star Charlotte Ritchie joins as an art gallery director who feels an instant distrust towards Joe when he begins circling one of her friends.

Dreamland

Sky Comedy, 2023

Lily Allen will be showing off her acting chops again in Dreamland, a seaside comedy inspired by the 2018 award-winning short film of the same name. It co-stars Doctor Who’s Freema Agyeman and, set in Margate, is set to be a dark comic exploration of multi-generational female relationships, and their dysfunctional family dynamics.

One Day

Netflix, 2023

David Nicholls’s 2009 bestseller One Day was previously adapted into sob-fest of a movie in 2001, starring Anne Hathaway. Now, Netflix is turning the story of lovers Emma and Dexter into a series, featuring the brilliant Amika Mob from NHS drama This is Going to Hurt.

Shrinking

Apple TV+, 27 January

Jason Segel and Harrison Ford in ‘Shrinking’ (Apple)

Romcom king Jason Segel plays a therapist with a lot of problems of his own in this new show from the team behind Ted Lasso. Harrison Ford and Jessica Williams co-star as the fellow therapists at his practice.

Bodies

Netflix, 2023

Stephen Graham will star in this new series alongside Kyle Soller, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Amaka Okafor, and Shira Haas, who play four detectives in four different time periods attempting to solve the same crime. It’s an adaptation of the 2015 graphic novel of the same name by Si Spencer.

Kaleidoscope

Netflix, 1 January

The first thing to know about Kaleidoscope is that it is non-linear, meaning the episodes can be watched in almost any order. It’s inspired by the largest heist ever attempted, when $70bn (£57.9bn) in bonds went missing in downtown Manhattan during Hurricane Sandy. It stars Giancarlo Esposito, Paz Vega, Rufus Sewell, Tati Gabrielle and many more, and we don’t think we’ll fully understand how it works until we watch it.

Robbie Williams documentary

Netflix, 2023

We don’t know the name of this documentary yet, but we do know that – according to the “Angels” singer himself – it will be “full of sex and drugs and mental illness”. “I’m more likely than most people to leave everything in,” he has said of the show. “I very rarely, if ever, have said, ‘That’s too much, take it off.’”

Big Brother

ITV2, 2023

Davina McCall presenting ‘Big Brother’ (Getty Images)

Having previously had homes on Channel 4 and Channel 5, Big Brother is now returning for the first time since 2018 – and it will air on ITV2. The host is yet to be announced, but our money’s on former presenter Davina McCall or Celebrity Big Brother winner Rylan Clark.

The Crown season six

Netflix, 2023

The sixth and final series of the royal drama sees Imelda Staunton returning as the Queen and Jonathan Pryce as the Duke of Edinburgh. All eyes will be on showrunner Peter Morgan to see how he covers the death of Diana, Princess of Wales in a Paris car crash.

Succession

Sky Atlantic, 2023

The Roy kids were left in disarray in the season three finale, with Brian Cox’s Logan cutting his three children – Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Shiv (Sarah Snook) and Roman (Kieran Culkin) – out of making decisions for Waystar Royco. Who knows what will happen next, but there’ll certainly be lavish parties and backstabbing aplenty.

Black Mirror season six

Netflix, 2023

The dystopian sci-fi anthology series is back, with Rob Delaney, Myha’la Herrold, Paapa Essiedu, Josh Hartnett, Aaron Paul and Kate Mara among the cast who have already been announced. Creator Charlie Brooker is always very secretive when it comes to storylines, so watch this space for more news in that department.

Simon Bird in ‘Everyone Else Burns’ (Channel 4)

Everyone Else Burns

Channel 4, 9 January

This new sitcom sees The Inbetweeners star Simon Bird playing the leader of an ultra-religious sect. It looks very silly indeed, and is expected to be a send-up of cults, following the ups and downs of the Lewis family as they try to live their lives in modern society, all while protecting themselves from eternal damnation.